Beyond Those Emerald Eyes
by Exotine
Summary: "Remember me, Cinder Fall. These eyes will be the last thing you see before the world goes cold."
1. The Journey of a Thousand Miles

**Disclaimer:** I do not own RWBY or anything in Remnant besides my OCs and the plot line.

Now onward with the story!

{EDIT: I wanted to change a few character details for Jasper. Just to make the story a little bit more...interesting.}

o~o

 **Betrayal.**

 **She never knew the true meaning of it until now. More importantly, she never knew the feeling of it until now. It was like a dagger lodging itself into her back, ruthlessly turning and twisting and prying open her flesh until it ultimately devoured her life. It sought itself out to bring her down, and kill her in her weakest moments. But it wasn't the dagger itself that bothered her the most.**

 **It was the person holding it.**

 **She thought she could have trusted him. And she did. He didn't alienate her because she had an uncontrollable semblance. He was the one who took her off the streets, and gave her a home and a meal every day. He taught her how to fight, and how to protect herself. But the most important thing was that she knew that he loved her, and he always felt safe with her.**

 **But all that trust, and that bond between them was broken.**

 **Thanks to that bitch next to him.**

 **Forest green eyes met jeweled emeralds in a silent conversation. One pair held guilt and regret while the other held distraught and pain, which quickly morphed into silent rage. She abruptly spun on her heels and walked away with her back to the two as she slinked into ever comforting darkness.**

 **"Wait! This isn't what it—"**

 **"Don't worry about her. She'll come to one her own. The simple fact is that you deserve more that her."**

 **"But it wasn't suppose to end this way! She should have joined us!"**

 **"You know that wasn't going to happen. It's either you sacrifice this entire dust empire that you worked so hard to maintain, or her. And you made the right call. I'm proud of you, sweetheart. Now come on, we have a few more things to do."**

 **She watched from her shroud of protection in the shadows. She watched with tearing eyes as they boarded the airbus. She watched as he simply forgot about her and moved on with his life. She watched as the woman beside him paused for a moment, and turned around to stare back. Amber eyes met broken jade eyes, and the woman had the nerve to smile.**

 **A smile of malicious intent.**

 **The woman grinned, and she watched as the airbus rose into the dark sky, disappearing from sight. She stood, fist clenched and eyes fixated on the fractured moon, as she whispered a promise on her chapped lips.**

 **"Remember me, Cinder Fall. These eyes will be the last thing you see before the world goes cold."**

o~o

Emerald green eyes snapped open in discomfort and fear, reacquainting themselves with the interior of the massive aircraft. Their owner—a teenaged girl clad a black t-shirt, matching ripped skinny jeans, combat boots and a trench coat—sat up in discomfort, with a drop of sweat beading on her forehead from the surreal images in her mind. Her back leaned against the seat and nervously fidgeted with the silver skull rings on her hands, all the while taking a deep breath to calm her nerves.

 _It was just another one of those nightmares, Jasper. Nothing you've never experienced before._

Yet the thought of it made a shiver run up her spine. She was tired, and the lack of caffeine made it difficult to stay awake, but she was also sick of sleep for the moment. Sleep introduces nightmares. Nightmares introduces fear. And fear is an emotion that can render the most powerful beings to their knees.

Jasper's eyes wandered to the window to the left that revealed the great Kingdom that the aircraft was about to land in. The Kingdom of Vale, in all of its wonderful splendor and glory, was her destination home for the next four years of her life. Jasper loved how lively and how friendly the city looked from aerial view; Mistral, in contrast, was not a friendly area for outsiders from other Kingdoms to visit. Mistral's environment and citizens were unwelcoming in their appearances, and the high levels of crime made it an unsavory place to travel.

She hated Mistral, and it was always in her best interest to move away to another kingdom sometime in the near future, and it seemed that luck played in her favor. After all, what could have presented a better opportunity than being accepted into Beacon Academy in Vale?

…Hmph. Now that she thought about it, she was very lucky after all. Jasper didn't apply to Beacon of her own free will—her socioeconomic status could show anyone that while she wasn't poor, she didn't have the money to pay for the outrageous high fees that Beacon Academy was infamous for. Instead (much to her surprise and utter delight) big-shot Professor Ozpin himself and his stern assistant Goodwitch came all the way to her home to recruit her.

Well, 'recruit' was putting it lightly. It was more like them watching in mild amusement and recording her fend off a Grimm that looked uncannily similar to an alligator.

 _Or was it a crocodile?_

Jasper's musing was interrupted by the sudden appearance of multiple holograms that surrounded the main cabin. She looked up to see them display a relatively curvaceous middle-aged woman with platinum blonde hair that was hastily tied into a bun, with strands of it obscuring her bespectacled emerald eyes. Her white shirt was modest, but she could see hints of cleavage from where she was sitting on the aircraft. The woman also wore a black mini-skirt which would be considered inappropriate had she lacked the stockings that went with it. Her black boots were at knee's length, and a tattered black cape that completed her professional attire.

 _…Speak of the devil and (s)he shall appear._

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon." The woman began speaking. "My name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among a privileged few who have received the honor being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace,—"

 _Now that's bull._

"—and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such as task, and now, it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world. We trust that you have a wonderful year of education here at Beacon, and we will see you at the main auditorium for the opening ceremony."

The speech sticked with her as the holograms flickered off. Jasper bristled silently. If this world of evil is what Goodwitch considers to be a 'time of peace', then she sure as hell do not want to see the world as at a time of war. How could it be considered peaceful when the Grimm are mercilessly killing innocent people? Dust storage robberies committed by the White Fang are always the topic of discussion on the news (causing a certain family dust company to lose its economical status and reputation), while in the meantime the Atlesian military is currently in the process of weaponization to prepare for an impending war.

 _The 'peace' is a lie, but Goodwitch is still right at the end of the day: this world needs need Huntsmen and Huntresses to assure it doesn't go to hell in a hand basket._

That's why she was there, after all.

Her eyes shifted back to the window. The aircraft was slowly descending onto the top of a cliff that overlooked Vale as far as the eye can see with one of the great lakes to the far left-hand side of the Kingdom. The mostly sunshine with a few dotted cloud made the sight even more beautiful, almost as if the view was taken from a photograph.

 _What a gorgeous place to live._

The cabin lit up in an uproar of cheers and laughter as the aircraft finally landed onto a circular helipad. Jasper smile a little bit—sounds like she wasn't the only one who was elated about the next four years at Beacon. The aircraft's cabin door opened moments afterward, and prospective students immediately flooded out to explore the campus grounds. Jasper slowly rose from her seat, and took a small pause to stretch her limps after the long flight. Her lips twitched into a small smile as her hand reached for the duffle bag beneath her seat, and began to exit.

…Only to run into someone as she turned around from her seat.

"Oh!" Jasper yelped in surprise. "I didn't see you there."

"No, it's my fault. I should've watch where I was going."

Her eyes met a youthful and lanky man about her own age. What caught her attention first were his abnormal, crimson colored irises that stared at her own. His auburn hair was low and messy, with a few bangs dangling over his eyes. He was clad in a black tank top that revealed a nice set of abs, but a red jacket covered his muscles and biceps. His attire was complete with a set of black skinny jeans and converse, and a pair of aviators rested in his jacket.

Green met red, and red met green. Their eyes met and lingered on each other for a few moments with a long, awkward pause in-between each other.

"So, uh… You're new too, right?" He asked sheepishly.

Jasper nodded. "How'd you guess?"

"It's not that difficult when you're always staring moodily out the window."

She smiled wryly at that one. "Good point. There's just a lot on my mind."

"Oh yeah. I know what you mean. I'm terrified of what we're gonna be doing for the next four years. But isn't it exciting? I'm stoked for the dorms, activities, campus life. And plus," He winked mischievously. "I get to meet beautiful ladies like yourself."

"Not just yet, lover boy." She chuckled as she took a step to widen the distance between them. Jasper swung her duffle bag over her shoulder, and said: "Before you try and kiss me, we have a date at the opening ceremony for the new students."

"And I thought you'd never ask." He grabbed his own suitcase from off the shelves and moved towards the cabin door. "After all, why continue this awkward conversation when we could be exploring our new home?."

Jasper only rolled her eyes and absently followed his footsteps. She gazed beyond the door to see an airstrip that rested down to a lone cobblestone path that led to the entrance of the prestigious academy. She gazed back at the man in red, who only smiled back at her and gestured reassuringly.

"Ladies' first."


	2. Begins With the First Step

Hehe, I realized it's been a few months since the first post, and I'm sorry about that. It took far too long for me to think of a plot line of this story, and I still can't think of one. I guess I'm just going to have to figure it out as I go.

 **Disclaimer:** I do not own RWBY or anything in Remnant besides my OCs and the plot line.

Now, here comes the next part!

* * *

 **Chapter 2:** …Begins With The First Step.

The first thing Jasper noticed when she entered the auditorium was the crowd of people in the room.

Putting her claustrophobia aside, Beacon had a reputation for being a selective school where only elite combatants are able to attend the school. So the fact that she was in a room with at least two hundred other kids her age and older suggests that either the previous statement was a lie, or Beacon needs to redefine what they mean by 'selective'—it seems that anyone can just waltz right through the gates if they wanted to do so.

The second thing she noticed was the structure of the building. High ceilings, supported by wooden beams of some kind to approve the acoustics in the room—it was obviously built like an amphitheater to support sound quality. There were a lot of windows that allowed natural light to pour in, but the light that they emitted seemed to focus on a small area on a raised platform where a microphone stood. It was fancy, yet practically, and it was apparent that a fair amount of money was spent on a project like this.

 _It's no surprise that the tuition covers stuff like this. Forty thousand lien per year isn't something to be laughing at._

The rest of the students gathered around the stage, and sat in seats that were similar to the ones in a movie theatre. Jasper personally didn't feel like walking too far, so she stayed near the middle of the room—more importantly next to the exit in case anything happened—and took a spot on the right hand side.

The new students were currently waiting for the speech that Professor Ozpin was going to give, and instructions on what they were going to do for the rest of the day. Jasper hope she didn't have to wait in here for too long, though; the lack of space as well as the slight humidity in the room was starting to make her feel a little uncomfortable.

Though if you ask her, she'd rather be here than plenty other places right now.

"I didn't quite catch your name."

She jumped in her seat and held her hand over her heart. Sitting not far from to her was that guy from before—the guy in blue with the aviators who was keenly looking at her awaiting a response.

 _…Dammit. I nearly forgot he was there. I need to stop spacing out._ "Sorry?"

He laughed at her bewildered face. "I swear, you need to pay more attention to your surroundings. I said: I didn't get your name."

"…Oh, right!" Jasper wanted to kick herself. He was right—she didn't offer her name. She only knew the guy for about five minutes, and she already came across to him as rude! Jasper said sheepishly. "I'm Jasper. Jasper Jade. You are?"

"I'm Denim Darthart." He reached for her hand and shook it in a firm grip. "Nice to meet you."

"My pleasure." She returned the gesture. "So, uh. What brings you to Beacon?"

"Well, for me, it was either this or Atlas." Denim said, shrugging his shoulder indifferently. "And I'm not a fan of the military life style _or_ Ironwood." He shivered slightly at the thought of that. "You?"

"I'm personally not sure." Jasper said. "Ozpin and Ms. Goodwitch offered me a chance to Beacon, and of course I said yes. But I don't know what I'll do after the four years here, or what I'll would want to do.

"Don't know, huh? Same here." Denim mused. "But don't worry: we'll figure it out. We may not want to be official Hunters and Huntresses in the future, but right now we're here to attend Beacon and help Ozpin out as much as possible. That's the least we can do."

Jasper nodded in agreement, but she didn't comment aloud.

 _…He's right. I'd hate to admit it, but I'll eventually have to repay Ozpin and Goodwitch at some point. I must be thankful for what I have. But what did Ozpin even see in me? Why did he choose me? Is it because of_ him _? Because of—_

"Settle down. I'll promise to keep this brief."

The mellow, sage-like voice caught her attention to focus on the center stage. From behind the curtain, an older gentleman—clad in an ebony suit with a forest green scarf wrapped around his neck—approached the mic. He had sharp facial features and a light complexion, and Jasper would have thought of him as being handsome if not for the dark rings around his eyes and his stark white hair. He wore a tiny pair of (sun)glasses rested on the bridge of his nose that do a pathetic job of keeping the light out of his light brown eyes, and held a coffee mug in one hands and a slender black cane in the other.

 _Well, well, well. If it isn't Professor Ozpin in all of his glory…_

"You have traveled here today in search of knowledge—" Ozpin announced confidently into the mic. "—to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose—in need of direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step.

He paused to make sure his previous speech sunk into the minds of the youth before him. "If you feel as though you are up for the challenge, this first step will be taken tomorrow morning at the forest. Please take the rest of the day to learn the layout of the campus, and try not to get into too much trouble. That would be all for now."

He finished his speech before disappearing behind some curtains that led to the back area of the stage. Students whispered among themselves, unsure of what to think of Ozpin's daunting speech, but a certain individual in blue leapt from his seat in a flurry of excitement. His azure eyes gleamed brightly, like a child on Christmas morning.

Jasper only looked at him, trying to figure out what was up with him.

"Alright!" Denim grinned. "You heard the man: we have the rest of the day to explore the campus."

A single eyebrow raised in question. "'We'?"

"Yeah, as in you and me."

"There's no 'me' in 'we'."

"But there's a 'u' in 'us'."

That joker grin that Denim had grew even more after Jasper's inability to form a response. He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her towards the exit. "Gotcha. Now let's go, already."

"Whatever."

Denim reluctantly released her arm, but was still smiling a little. Jasper instinctively reached to fix her disheveled clothes, and stood up at full height. She chuckled at him—she never met someone like him before. He must be ready excited to be here—more that he was willing to let on.

 _He's an interesting one._

Now that she thought about it, it wouldn't be too bad sticking along with him for now. He's a nice guy, a little too young for her tastes, but she's seen worse. But still: it was too soon to start forming relationships again—the wounds were still too fresh after that _particular_ night.

The smile on her face instantly disappeared at that thought. _Don't think about it, Jasper. Think about the present, not the past._

Jasper followed Denim outside the auditorium and into the massive courtyard that stood at the heart of the school. She watched other students walk pass them, either deep in conversation or marveling at the unique architecture of the school campus. She personally didn't know where to start—there was so much to see, so much to do. Perhaps it would be a good idea to check out the dorms first just to put their bags away. Then maybe check out the library—apparently they have a really huge library with books galore. That would be pretty cool…

"Jasper! Watch it!"

She didn't have the time to think so she instinctively stepped to the side as soon as she sensed trouble. A blur of red was sent flying across the courtyard and was sent head first into a nearby bench. Opposite him was a group of punk boys, who seemed like the stereotypical bullies who think they could run the school as they wish.

The injured 'kid' was actually a well-built young man who seemed a little bit older than everyone else around him. His auburn hair was styled in an undercut, which matched his intense crimson colored eyes. The Pierce the Veil t-shirt he wore emphasized the set of toned muscles and abs underneath. He was clad in a pair of leather pants, and combat boots to fit. Lastly, tattoos and battle were prevalent on his arms, making look like a classic barbarian warrior from a movie.

"Hey, are you alright?"

The guy continued to inspect his injuries. From her distance, she could see the angry bruises that were scattered across his arms and legs, though he didn't seemed that bothered by those cuts at all.

Denim, however, was getting a little impatient.

"Hey! I asked if you were okay." Denim repeated in an albeit less friendly tone. "You need help?"

"I am fine." A low, smooth rumble erupted from his throat. He brushed himself off and got off the ground. "Just…don't get in the way."

Denim's eyes widened at that, before narrowing once more in a mocking way. "'Don't get in the way'? Says the guy who's getting his ass kicked by a bunch of punks."

"Cool it, Denim." Jasper whispered.

They were attracting attention—Jasper didn't like attention. People were gathering all around them, pointing and watching to see if something was going to happen. The boy slowly walked across the court and approached the group of boys who previously harmed him.

"Look, guys. I'm not interested in a fight." He warned. "I'd rather not get my clothes dirty over something so silly. I said it was accident."

"Sure it was." One of them spat sarcastically. "Almost just like the time you destroyed my crate of dust-supplies on the airbus. _Just an accident._ "

Jasper's eyes widened as she noticed his cuts starting to mend themselves on their own and vanish from sight. She heard that there were people with auras that allow them mend their own injuries overtime, but she's never a regenerative aura that powerful.

 _His wounds…they just disappeared. Is his aura that strong, or is that a part of semblance?_

"Man, I'm not in the mood for a fight right now." The crimson guy tried again, hoping the punks get the cue and just leave him be.

"Likewise." One of the bullies replied as he unsheathed a pair of chakrams.

The boy in red groaned, and rolled his eyes before reaching for the massive red sword that rested on his back. He pressed a small button on its hilt, releasing several small teeth that ran alongside the edge of the blade on a wire chain. His thumb touched another button, which had the cutting chain rotating around the edge of blade. It looked like a…

 _…a Chainsword._

Oh crap.

The last thing Jasper wanted was someone to get hurt with that thing. With a flex of the wrist, she summoned her spell cards with a flash of light. The light caught the bullies's attention, and it drifted from the man in red to her. The one with the chakrams started to charge at her, yet Jasper continued to hold her ground. Both Denim and the red guy looked at her in shock and concern, but didn't move an inch. The one with the chakrams was closing in on her fast, but Jasper knew that she was even faster.

She stood her ground, and held her position as she pulled a card from the deck and whispered an evocation.

 _"Elemental Arts: Earthly Chains."_

The earth underneath them suddenly shook a little, causing the bullies to pause in surprise and confusion. Their feet sank into the concrete while it wrapped around their ankles and legs, rendering the bullies unable to move. The group of punks struggled against it in vain, while the concrete continued to restrict their movement.

Jasper smiled slightly at her handiwork, and dismissed her deck of cards..

Denim and the nearby spectators gazed in shock but she ignored them for the moment. Her main focus was on the crimson guy, who decided to place his weapon back on his path and crossed his arms as if waiting for an explanation.

"Funny. I distinctly remember telling you and you friend there not to interfere." He recalled.

She passively shrugged her shoulders. "I figured having you deal with them would only result in corpses in the courtyard." Jasper explained. "And I don't want to walk over any dead bodies on the way to class."

A dark grin appeared on his face, revealing unusually sharp canines as he spoke. "Twisted answer, but I like it. The name's Akane."

"I'm Jasper." She said. "And the obnoxious guy who was throwing insults at you is Denim."

"Well, excuse me for having his health in mind. I just don't want him to get hurt" He rolled his eyes, but still had the decency to shake Akane's extended hand. "But then, you seem like you know how to handle a punch or two? Any chance you want go for a friendly duel one of these days?"

"With you? Sure, I'll stomp you into next week. Your dust mage friend over here? No deal, I'll get obliterated with those earth abilities of hers."

"You're exaggerating. Jasper drawled. "I'm not that bad, though people say I'm a little… intimidating."

"Intimidating? I would hate to see your definition of downright frightening, then."

The three laughed in mirth, and Jasper looked between both Denim and Akane. The two seem like very nice guys to talk to, and maybe even fight alongside in a few scenarios. Jasper hoped that Professor Ozpin decides to put her in a team with these two, and someone else who was also as cool as them.

Knowing her luck, that probably wasn't going to happen, but one can still hope and dream.

A small vibration interrupted them, and Akane smiled guiltily for a few moments before reaching in his back pocket for his scroll. He slid his fingertips across the surface of the scroll a few times, before reaching to place the device next to his ear.

"Hello?"

Jasper was able to hear a few muffles sound appear from the scroll, but couldn't make out any words. He continued.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't worry about me, I'm fine. Just had a little…altercation by the courtyards. I'm coming now, give me a few minutes, alright? Later."

On that note, he ended the call and pressed a few things on it before sliding the nifty device back into his pocket.

"Not to be rude, but I'm going to have to cut this conversation short." Akane said. "I have a friend waiting for me at the dorms, and she's getting quite impatient."

"Nah, I get where you're coming from. In fact, Jasper and I were about to head there actually when we saw you. Right, Jasper?"

"We were?"

Denim sent a not-so-subtle annoyed frown at her, while Akane merely smiled at the exchange. "Alright fine, we'll go together. Besides, the sun is nearly setting over the horizon, and I've yet to unpack for the night.

"Agreed." Jasper remarked. "And tomorrow's going to be a long day with the initiation and the selection of teams. We should head in for the night."

The three started to walk down the cobblestone path that led further into the campus grounds. After walking a couple of meters, Denim paused suddenly.

"Hey guys?"

"Yeah?"

"Where exactly _are_ the dorms?"

Both Jasper and Akane stopped walking and turned back to face Denim, before looking between themselves and came to a full realization.

They had no frickin clue where they were going.

* * *

 **Finally finished this part, and I'll start writing the next chapter immediately. By the way, Jasper's weapon is a deck of magical dust cards, and her semblance is / will be summoning. I'll reveal Denim's and Akane's weapons and abilities in due time. As in, as soon as I figure that out.**

 **Please let write a comment about what you liked / didn't like / whatever you desire. I'll appreciate it!**


End file.
